The Real Olga Of Olga’s Kitchen Dies at 92

Olga Loizon, who began a Michigan restaurant tradition after a visit to her native Greece in the 1960's, has died. She was 92.

Loizon found inspiration in that visit to perfect her version of the Gyro. Everything came together in 1970.

As luck would have it, while shopping at the fondly-remembered Continental Market in Birmingham, Michigan, Olga walked past a “wooden shoe” store that was closing. She stopped. She didn’t want any wooden shoes, she wanted the 10 x 10 space. After securing a loan at her local bank, the first woman to ever achieve that small feat, Olga was in business. - Olga's Kitchen website

That first storefront became Olga's Kitchen. The one location became multiple locations, including Crossroads Mall, but primarily in the Metro Detroit area. Olga's fell on hard times and filed for bankruptcy in 2015. The chain was subsequently purchased by Team Schostak Family Restaurants. Even after the sale, Loizon would continue to visit the restaurants bearing her name.